As synthetic therapeutic agents for diabetes which show blood-sugar lowering action, sulfonylurea preparations have commonly been used to date. Their use, however, requires very careful control because they may cause hypoglycemic symptoms or induce drug resistance. In recent years, development of hypoglycemic agents is therefore under way as substitutes for the above sulfonyl urea preparations. Among them, interested are those capable of enhancing the insulin sensitivity at peripheries and showing blood-sugar lowering action.,
Effects available from these agents, however, are still not satisfactory and moreover, their side effects cannot be considered to have been reduced fully. Further, as there are many diabetics who have also developed hyperlipidemia, there is an outstanding demand for the development of pharmaceuticals having both blood-sugar lowering action and blood-lipid lowering action.